Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a vehicle light emitting display device and a vehicle display system which displays information by using reflection of light by a front windshield (window glass) or the like in front of a driver in a vehicle.
Description of Related Art
A typical vehicle head-up display (HUD) device projects beams of display light, which contain various information items to be displayed, to a front windshield or a reflective plate called a combiner via a HUD unit, and forms an optical path such that light reflected by the front windshield or the like is directed toward an eye point of a driver. Accordingly, the driver can observe a scene ahead of the vehicle through the front windshield, and can concurrently observe a virtual image displayed by the HUD which is reflected in the front windshield or the like. That is, the driver can observe various information items displayed by the HUD while maintaining a normal driving state.
In contrast, instead of using a HUD unit, a simple driver assistance system disclosed in Patent Literature 1 uses ten light emitting elements which are disposed at different positions. Light emitted from each light emitting element on a dashboard is reflected by a front windshield, and is directed toward an eye point of a driver. Accordingly, similar to a case where a HUD unit is installed, the driver can observe light emission of each light emitting element without moving their line of sight while maintaining a normal driving state. A displayer of the system disclosed in Patent Literature 1 is not capable of displaying various information items, but is capable of calling a driver's attention to any warning. The system is capable of changing the display position of a warning observed by the driver by selectively turning on and off the ten light emitting elements.
[Patent Literature 1] JP-A-Hei8-115491
According to a related art, a displayer disclosed is capable of immediately transferring the occurrence of an abnormality to the driver in a state where a driver directs their line of sight in a forward direction.
In contrast, unless the number of light emitting elements disposed on the dashboard is increased, the number of display positions of warnings is limited. Accordingly, there is a possibility of not being able to obtain a satisfactory display capability due to large errors in display positions in a situation where the display positions of warnings are very meaningful. If the number of light emitting elements is increased, the number of components is increased, and the cost increases. It may be difficult to ensure a space for disposing many light emitting elements in a vehicle, or man-hours required to perform the mounting of components may increase, which is a problem.
A typical HUD device is capable of displaying various information items, and adjusting display positions with high accuracy. Since the HUD device is required to project display light to the entire area of a somewhat large size, unless a high-output light source is used, it is not possible to sufficiently ensure display brightness. A use of a high-output light source increases power consumption or the amount of generated heat, which is a problem. In a case where display brightness is low, a driver may be highly likely to overlook a warning display. In a case where the size of a display area of the HUD device is small, the HUD device is not capable of displaying warnings at various locations, and the freedom of controlling display positions is reduced.
For example, in a case where it is detected that a human, an animal, an object, or the like has rushed onto a road ahead on the course of a host vehicle, desirably, the display position of a warning can be accurately controlled such that a driver can immediately move their line of sight to the position of a target, and pay attention to the target.